Sojournal

Lunchroom Theology is a new book co-authored by Johnson University faculty/staff members Heather Gorman (Professor of New Testament) and Mark Nelson (Executive Director, Three Rivers Collaborative). In this interview, we discuss the books premise and several highlights that help us see the value of Pushing Tables Together in a Fractured World .

Born and raised in rural Indiana, Jennifer moved to the Knoxville area for college in the mid 1990s and never left. For 25 years, Jennifer has worked with English language learners in the local school systems and in the community. Jennifer is a product of the Templar School of Education and was a student of the late Dr. Chris Templar. Listen in to learn about Jen's journey from the Midwest to...

Though she is not a graduate, Teri attended Johnson in the late 1970s. A native of central Indiana, Teri found Christ at Jamestown Christian Church in Jamestown, IN. Originally a student at Lincoln Christian College, Teri transferred to Johnson after experiencing the campus while traveling with a musical group. Listen in to learn more about Teri's journey to faith, experience at Johnson, and h...

Kim lives in Kokomo, Indiana, and recently celebrated her 30th wedding anniversary with her husband, Jim, and they have three kids (including Rebekah, a 2023 graduate). Kim serves as the DayCare Pastor at Crossroads Learning Corner, a ministry of Crossroads Community Church in Kokomo.

A long-time public servant as an attorney in Nashville, Tennessee, Jess is living the retired life in Lenoir City, Tennessee. Originally a product of Charleston, West Virginia, Jess lived in northeast Ohio until he came to Johnson in 1976.

Michael (’93) and Amy Edmunds have been married for 30 years. They serves the Lord in Dawsonville, Georgia, and they are beekeepers and sheep owners. The product of a broken home, Michael met Christ as a highschooler and made his way to Johnson. Michael continues to stay involved in ministry and has an interesting journey to share.

Jason grew up in Beckley, West Virginia, and spent most of his adolescent life attending Oak Grove Christian Church under the discipleship of Ken (’61) Overdorf, Burt (’83) Brock, Rick (’83) Burdette, and Dave (’89) Mullins. Jason's first ministry after graduation, which he started before graduation, was at Farragut Christian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. So far, it is Jason's only minis...

After 19 years away from the Tennessee campus, Eddie Mullins stopped by while his family was vacationing in nearby Pigeon Forge. His visit enabled us to catch up and that interaction on campus led to this podcast interview. Eddie has experienced the ups and downs of ministry in the local church and it is his journey that will give listeners some food for thought in their own ministry contexts.

Susan (Ogdon, '67, '16) Calderon is a former missionary and Johnson University lecturer in the School of Intercultural Studies. As a retired widow, Susan has joined five other missionary/minister widows to collaborate on the book, "Who Am I Now that He is Not Here?" which was made available on Amazon in February. Susan is passionate about her faith and helping others find hope an...

Jeremy ('07) Hobbs is unique among the history of Sojournal podcast guests. He is the first certificate graduate to be featured in the podcast. Jeremy earned an undergraduate certificate in missions from Johnson University in 2007. After achieving his certificate, Jeremy went on to graduate from East Tennessee State University in 2010 with a bachelor's degree in construction technology. To...

Raised on a Christian camp property in Southern Ohio, Justin had a lot of freedom in his formative years. Sometimes his proximity to weeks of camp afforded him opportunities to rub shoulders with Johnson alumni and Johnson travel teams. These, along with the fact that his dad was an alumnus, contributed to Justin becoming a member of Johnson's campus community as a student in the early 2000s....

After experiencing college life and vocational life in other contexts, Don came to Johnson University to gain a theological foundation. A native of California, Don found a passion for the arts and it is a passion he has carried throughout his career. His musical artistic expression found expression in contexts of television, band directing, worship leading, and more. Don currently preaches in Penn...

Nathan Lawler ministers in Oregon but has experienced life and ministry in a variety of locations throughout the United States. Tune in to this second episode to catch up on Nathan's everchanging ministry journey.

Craig's journey in life started in Illinois and includes various points on the map in the Eastern third of the United States. The son of first-generation Christian parents, Craig's evolution of faith was not without it's challenges. Craig currently serves as the Senior Minister at Lebanon Christian Church in Lebanon, Indiana. He and his wife (Audrey) have two grown sons, the youngest o...

Originally from Long Island, New York, Tim Hannon currently makes his home in Rochester, New York, where Tim serves the University of Rochester as the Associate Director for Student Conduct. Tim's journey to Johnson was influenced by James Hamer ('75) and others who served the East Northport Christian Church. He is a graduate of the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences on both the unde...

This episode is just a brief thank you to everyone who made 2023 a great year on the Sojournal Podcast and for everyone who made 2023 a great year at Johnson University. This episode features snippets of several students who introduced themselves and offered personal notes of gratitude. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you who are part of the Sojournal audience.

Raised in the nearby community of Seymour, Tennessee, Phil Arlinghaus has always been familiar with Johnson but never really considered it as an option for higher education until circumstances led him back to the area and he learned about Johnson's degree in media communications. Today, Phil is married, lives in Seymour, and works as the Operations Manager for Joy 620 WRJZ in Knoxville, Tennes...

Mike Householder is involved in a variety of initiatives, but his passion is making disciples through a tool he has developed and deployed around the world. A community boy, Michael was associated with Johnson through camp and as a non-student participant on a musical traveling team. Listen in to learn about the variety of projects that have Mike's attention as well as the special opportunity...

Left unsharpened, tools grow dull. Dr. Overdorf helps preachers and public speakers sharpen their skills with 52 weeks worth of lessons from his book, "One Year to Better Preaching." Today's final conversation in this 4-part series focuses on five more exercises for preachers to consider: Go to Work With a Church Member Employ Purposeful Humor Preach in Dialogue Write for the Ear Bon...

Left unsharpened, tools grow dull. In each episode of this 4-part series, Dr. Daniel Overdorf discusses five exercises preachers (or anyone involved in public speaking) can use to sharpen their communication skills. In this episode, Dr. Overdorf shares lessons on expanding your multi-cultural awareness, designing careful transitions, crafting evocative words, considering the text's literary fo...

Dr. Daniel Overdorf, a 1995 graduate of Johnson University, currently serves on the school's preaching faculty. Experienced in pastoral ministry himself, Dr. Overdorf has written a few books on the subject of preaching and pastoral care. Today is part 2 of a 4-part series on lessons learned from Dr. Overdorf's book,  One Year to Better Preaching: 52 Exercises to Hone Your Skills . This boo...

Dr. Daniel Overdorf, a 1995 graduate of Johnson University, currently serves on the school's preaching faculty. Experienced in pastoral ministry himself, Dr. Overdorf has written a few books on the subject of preaching and pastoral care. As a service to our alumni, we have decided to start offering more than just alumni life interviews on the Sojournal podcast. We want to learn from our alumni...

Most of Peter (’95) Ramsey’s life and vocational journey involves various points on the Florida map. A native of South Daytona, most of Pete’s early faith development was in South Daytona Christian Church. He especially credits the influence of Bobby Smith as a key contributor to Pete's faith and a key encourager of Pete's choice to attend the Florida campus. Pete says, "I NEVER wante...

A native of Central Indiana, Jill grew in her faith as a member of Bethany Christian Church in Anderson. She credits the church's excellent discipleship emphasis as one of the reasons she grew to possess a well grounded faith. Under the influence of such well-known Johnson alumni such as Lanis ('48) Kineman, David ('68) Woods, and Larry ('73) Kineman, it is no wonder Jill came to C...

A native of Pennsylvania, Dave Trout encountered Christ as a teenager thanks to the influence of his older sister and the ministry of Greg ('84) Pelc at Hempfield Church of Christ. Although Dave graduated with a focus on Preaching, his ministry journey has been anything but traditional. While Dave has experience as an associate minister and senior minister, he never settled into a long-term mi...